Playmobil Traffic Cone Discovered in Man's Lung — 40 Years After It Was 'Lost'

Playmobil Traffic Cone Discovered in Man's Lung — 40 Years After It Was 'Lost'

If your kids enjoy playing with toys that have small pieces, it might be safe to assume that they're consuming some of them. Even if they are no longer toddlers.

A 47-year-old man from Preston, England, recently took a trip down memory lane following a surgery. He had a persistent cough for about a year when he was referred to a respiratory clinic. Since the man was a smoker, doctors feared that the mass showing up on his chest X-ray must be a cancerous tumor. They did surgery to remove it, only to find something incredibly odd: a tiny Playmobil traffic cone. The patient had received the toy as a gift for his seventh birthday.

Four months after the toy that had been lodged in the man's lung for 40 years was removed, the patient's cough had almost entirely disappeared. The moral of the story? Don't underestimate your kids' ability to put their toys in the strangest of places.